In the mounting of outlets to the exterior of a building, covered electrical boxes are commonly used for providing a rainproof electrical enclosure. These outdoor electrical enclosures are typically multi-piece structures, typically comprising three or more separate pieces to provide a weatherproof enclosure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,135 (hereinafter the '135 patent), for example, discloses an outdoor weatherproof electrical outlet cover adapted to be attached in weatherproof connection to an electrical outlet. The outlet cover includes a base plate, insert, gasket, and protective housing that are used in conjunction with an electrical box to provides a weatherproof enclosure for an electrical outlet. Although the outlet cover disclosed in this patent provides adequate protection for the outlet against the weather, it is inordinately complex, requiring a four-piece assembly, in addition to the electrical box. The protective housing itself is quite large, in fact the largest piece in the assembly, as it must project beyond the front of the base plate to allow space for accommodating a couple of three-prong plugs therein. As protective housings or covers for electrical outlets must pass a cold impact test to meet established electrical codes, they are typically constructed of high impact resistant plastics. Therefore the protective housing of the '135 patent, which is a relatively large piece in the assembly described therein, must be constructed of impact resistant plastic, which is significantly more expensive than non-impact resistant plastics. Additionally, the outlet cover of the '135 patent provides for coverage of a standard electrical box in which the outlet is mounted even with the wall surface. In case of a hard impact that breaks the protective housing, there is no additional protection to the outlet, which being mounted at the surface, is subject to impact once the protective housing is broken.
Accordingly, what is needed is an outlet box that is recessed to place the outlet substantially behind the wall surface, thereby providing additional protection to the outlet from hard impacts capable of breaking the protective cover. Additionally the outlet box should be of simple construction and assembled from a minimum number of separate parts. Furthermore, the construction should be such that the size of the cover is minimized, to limit the cost of producing the outlet box.